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Morning Brief: Trump threatens China with more tariffs

What to watch today

On Tuesday, we’ll get more data on the housing market with housing starts in May expected to increase 2.1% while the number of building permits issued is forecast to have declined by 1% during the month. And on the earnings side, notable results expected out Tuesday include Oracle (ORCL) and FedEx (FDX), which are both expected to report earnings after the market close.

Top news

REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque/File Photo/File Photo

Trump issues new trade threat: U.S. President Donald Trump threatened to impose a 10% tariff on $200 billion of Chinese goods and Beijing warned it would retaliate, in a rapid escalation of the trade conflict between the world’s two biggest economies. Trump’s latest move, as Washington fights trade battles on several fronts, was unexpectedly swift and sharp. [Reuters]

Wells Fargo mulls combining wealth management divisions:Wells Fargo & Co. (WFC) said it is considering restructuring and possibly combining two of its retail brokerage businesses, a move to increase efficiency among the two legacy units. The two divisions have long overlapped. Both employ financial advisers who work with mass affluent clients. [Reuters]

BlackRock offers financial advisers a free perk: The world’s largest asset manager hopes to sell more investment products to Main Street with one of the oldest strategies in business: the freebie. BlackRock Inc. is coaxing financial advisers to upload their client holdings to a complimentary BlackRock website that tests how those portfolios perform under different economic scenarios and compare them to peers. [The Wall Street Journal]

Disney tests pricing power at theme parks: After raising some ticket prices for its theme parks by more than 20% over the past five years, Walt Disney Co. (DIS) will set a new benchmark this week when it offers die-hard fans the chance to attend a six-hour preview of a new attraction at Disneyland — for $299. [The Wall Street Journal]

Fed’s Williams sees rosy economy: Federal Reserve Bank of New York President John Williams said the U.S. economy is in “great shape” and indicated he’ll keep pushing for banks to improve corporate culture. “As a policy maker, solid growth, a strong labor market, and inflation near our target are all exactly what I want to see,” the former head of the Fed’s San Francisco branch said Monday. [Bloomberg]

Protestors demonstrate against the separation of migrant children from their families in front of clothes representing migrant children on June 18, 2018 in Los Angeles, California. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrested 162 undocumented immigrants last week during a three-day operation in Los Angeles and surrounding areas. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)